Astor Center Wine Class Notes: Elements of Wine

Hi,

This post is the class notes I took down from the wine class at Astor Center, New York. I hope you find it useful.

Cheers,

Cyan

• Think of white wine as a slice of apple and red wine as apple sauce. Or think of white wine as lemon juice with sugar (therefore no tannins) and red wine as lemon juice with sugar and a tea bag (therefore tannins). 

• For red wine, as age goes up, color goes lighter; For white wine, as age goes up, color goes darker. 

• When observe color of wine, look at the corner of the glass of wine.

• There are four major factors that influence the final result of wine. They are grape varietal, geographic and climate condition, grape-growing mechanism and wine-making tactics. 

• Think of wine and food pairing of skiing through the trees, and the extreme flavors from either wine or food as the trees, i.e. the obstacles you need to come through when skiing. The pairing helps get rid of the trees. 

• The only reason to change temperature is to adjust the sense of acidity of wine. Cooler the wine will hide acidity. In general, the suitable temperate for wine drinking is from 58 to 64.

• The two biggest things that make wine go bad are aeration and temperature. Light as well. 

• The older the wine, the higher degree different flavors tend to mix together. 

• The Tasting Checklist:

Fruit (smell / olfactory sensations) - is the wine’s overall flavor bold and concentrated, or is it subtle and understated?
Oak (smell / olfactory sensations) - is there evidence of flavors from new oak barrels, like vanilla, dessert spices, caramel or toasted nuts?
Dryness (taste sensations) - was there any sweetness on the tip of your tongue, or was the wine dry?
Acidity (taste sensations) - was the wine tart and short in acidity, or was it round and creamy?
Body (mouthfeel / physical sensations) - does the wine feel sheer and delicate on your tongue, or is it thick and viscous?
Tannin (mouthfeel / physical sensations) - if the wine if red, does it leaves a soft, velvety feeling, or does it leave a tight ‘dry month’ sensations?
Intensity (aftertaste / physical sensations) - do the wine’s flavors linger after you swallow? are they pleasant?

• Wine Tasting Technique:

Look at the wine against a white background
Swirl the wine in your glass
Take a few deep sniffs of the wine
Taste the wine
Concentrate on your perceptions
Evaluate the characteristics on the checklist on a scale of low, medium or high
Think about the wine - will it taste better with food? if so, what kind of food?
Record your impressions